1920 Model T Ford bus from Fife delivered secret essence of Drambuie in Edinburgh
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The 1920 vehicle has been lovingly restored by an enthusiast south of the border, and he is now keen to fill in the blanks in its back story.
Terry Leach brings vintage vehicles back into operation and displays them at rallies.
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Hide AdHe bought the bus ten years ago and has tracked its origins down to Fife - but still needs to find some missing pieces of the jigsaw.
It is believed the vehicle was originally used by the Minto Bar in Lochgelly to deliver goods, and was licenced to operate within a 35-mile radius of the town’s Post Office.
A foot plate bore the name of H.K. Brown, motor engineer from the Ford service depot in Kirkcaldy.
Mr Brown had a garage at the Crown Hotel Thornton in 1920 - and Mr Leach is keen to track down a picture of the premises from that time, and find out more about the Ford dealer.
A search to prove the origins of the vehicle’s registration also revealed the bus had played an important role in the production of a liquer in Edinburgh.
According to Mr Leach’s research, it was subsequently used by the Drambuie Liqueur Company to transport the secret essence manufactured by a Mrs MacKinnon to the production facility in Union Street - the company’s base from 1909-37 - in the New Town.
The bus was displayed at the Drambuie bottling plant in Kirkliston, and also spent some time at the Grampian transport Museum in Alford, Aberdeenshire.
Mr Leach said: “I had a huge effort to convince DVLA it was the original number. They wanted it verified.
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Hide Ad“That led me to the Drambuie Museum where the curator provided me with a letter confirming its history.
“That also led me on Glenfiddich where it was kept at the bottling plant for some time.
“But I’d love to get a picture of it at the Crown Hotel, and find out more about the Ford dealer and its history there.”
During restoration Mr Leach also found a note between the floorboards dated August 24, 1938 which confirmed a journey to Cupar, and asked the customer to “kindly give reply to bearer and oblige.”
Mr Leach’s family has a history of restoring vehicles for exhibiting rallying and wedding hire - it’s very much a labour of love.
“Some people renovate vehicles and sell them on. To me, they become members of my family and are cherished.
“We keep them in good repair and take them to rallies.
The hotel bus is unique - its bodywork was manufactured by W Shepard Market Bosworth, and I don’t know of any others still in existence.
“When we got to a Model T meeting it attracts a lot of interest.
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Hide AdMr Leach’s collection of vintage vehicles can be seen on his Facebook page, and anyone who can assist him with the history of the Model T Ford bus from the Kingdom should email [email protected]